King of Mushrooms | July 19, 2021

Fresh & Local:

King of Mushrooms

You may have noticed a handsome fungus among us at market these last couple weeks: the alluring Chanterelle mushroom. These are wild-foraged mushrooms with a gorgeous bright golden color. Several Crescent City Farmers Market vendors, including Mycelium Express, Veggi Co-op and Johndale Farm are all gathering up these seasonal goodies and bringing them to our markets - come get them before they’re gone!

Many people find that Chanterelle mushrooms are tastiest when cooked rather than raw. Since the majority of the flavor compounds in Chanterelles are fat-soluble, they are the perfect mushrooms to cook up in some cream, butter, or oil. They also contain smaller amounts of water- and alcohol-soluble flavor compounds, so they’re also great in dishes that feature wine or other cooking alcohols. They are delicious on pizzas, in pasta dishes, stirred into risotto, or even fantastic as a filling for vegetarian tacos - now is a great time to get creative and try a new spin on your favorite mushroom recipes with Chanterelles.

Picks of the Week:

Support Local Restaurants and Farmers with COOLinary New Orleans

The summer is a special time of year here in New Orleans for many reasons, but one of our favorite celebrations is “COOLinary New Orleans.” From July 14th to September 5th, select restaurants participate by offering a pre-fixe menu at unbeatable prices. Enjoy a 2 or 3 course lunch at $25 or less or a 3-course dinner or brunch for $45 or less at some of New Orleans’ most famous restaurants. Want to take advantage of this special time of year from the comfort of your own home? Many of these restaurants offer take-out and delivery options. Each week we have the pleasure of seeing some of our favorite local Chefs purchasing products from our vendors at Crescent City Farmers Markets to feature on their menus, and several are participating in COOLinary New Orleans this year. Head over to Boucherie, Del Fuego, Gabrielle, Patois, or Palm & Wine to see how our Chefs transform local produce into delectable culinary treats! You can view the full list of participating restaurants and learn more about COOLinary New Orleans by visiting their website.

Curbside is Ending at Markets

Starting Tuesday, July 20th, Crescent City Farmers Markets will no longer be operating a curbside pre-order option at markets. However, customers can still pre-purchase items from vendors through WhatsGood for all 3 markets and walk up to pick those items up, which is always a great way to make sure you know an item you want won’t sell out before you can get there. For those who prefer a contactless option, the Sunday hybrid market at Tad Gormley Stadium in City Park will continue to offer pre-order drive-thru from 8 - 9:45 am using WhatsGood, as well as walk-up 10 am - 12 pm. Also, you can have the Crescent City Farmers Market Box delivered each week directly to your home, by pre ordering through TopBox Foods.

Figs!

Figs are here y’all, but be warned the season is just as short as it is sweet. If you’re a fig-lover like us, get ‘em while you can. Fresh figs should be plump and soft, without bruising or splits and are most flavorful when served at room temperature. They’re highly perishable, so store them in your fridge and wash them just before eating, just like you would a strawberry. Sweet figs pair well with rich dairy so dishes with yogurt, cheese or custard are a sure bet. They’re great in baked goods and other sweets, but also stand up to a more savory treatment, as in a salad or pizza with a salty cured meat and a bracing sour or vinegar component. If you’re looking to save the season, they make excellent preserves and are great dried too. We have multiple varieties of figs at market including celeste, brown turkey, and LSU gold and purple. Our vendors Figue Envie, Indian Springs Farmers Association, Isabel’s Produce and Tamales, Faust Farm and Monica’s Okra World are all selling figs. So stop by and load up on the sweetest fruit July has to offer.

Vendor of the Week:

Mycelium Express

If you have been to any of our markets, you will recognize the two masterminds behind Mycelium Express. Rickey and Mike have been growing mushrooms since September of 2018 and have been a beloved part of our market since the Summer of 2019. Rickey and Mike cultivate a wide selection of mushrooms including Oyster, Shiitake, Portobello, Cremini, Lions’ Mane, Coral Tooth, and King Trumpet. They also carry wild foraged mushrooms like Golden Chanterelles and Morels when they are in season, so get them while you can! And not to mention, Rickey and Mike recently started offering specialty tinctures made from their mushrooms. Most of their mushrooms are grown in their facility in Old Jefferson, but Rickey and Mike are working on a new facility in Pearl River where they hope to expand their production to offer dehydrated mushrooms, workshops for lab production as log colonization for home growers, and grow-at-home kits! They are even working on building a commercial kitchen so that they can offer vegan/vegetarian ready-to-eat foods featuring their mushrooms. Mike and Rickey will be slowing down their production in August to focus on some of these new projects but plan to be back in September in full force-- so stay tuned! If you haven’t met these “fun-guys”, you can find them at the Tuesday Uptown Market, Thursday at the Mid-City Market, or on Sundays at our City Park Market.

Recipes of the Week:

Simple Sautéed Chanterelle Mushrooms

This beautiful bright orange/yellow fresh chanterelles (mushrooms) recipe is nutty, earthy, chewy and very easy to cook.

What’s your favorite dish to make after visiting the Crescent City Farmers Market? Share your recipes with us on Instagram or Facebook or even Twitter and it might be featured in our weekly newsletter!

Fresh Local Produce Delivered

Need fresh local produce delivered to your door? Crescent City Farmers Market has partnered with Top Box Foods to create boxes full of CCFM vendor products for home delivery! CCFM Box and Market Momma box pre-ordering is OPEN NOW. Order Here.